Porsche Reportedly Working on a Two-door Version of a Four-door Car (Don't Worry, There's a Four-door 'Coupe' SUV, Too)

Steph Willems
by Steph Willems

The auto industry has become so unconventional, so bizarro world, that I became momentarily confused after reading a report that Porsche has a Panamera coupe in development.

Automakers don’t develop new coupes. They develop slightly more curvaceous versions of four-door crossovers and SUVs and call them coupes, but they’re certainly not coupes. Thus, I found myself picturing a curvaceous four-door liftback version of a curvaceous four-door liftback. Reality bent and flexed around me and the universe crumbled.

That’s apparently what Porsche is up to, though, and it’s looking like the two-door version of the Panamera — if built — will serve as a spiritual successor to the long departed 928.

The report from Germany’s AutoBild (via Motor1) claims we could see a grand touring variant of the Panamera sometime next year. Recall that Porsche recently stretched the model into something resembling a wagon — the Panamera Sport Turismo. The Panamera home could find itself hosting a threesome in a year’s time, though there’s a chance the model will appear under a separate name.

Joining this new two-door vehicle in the Porsche lineup is a much more obvious model, AutoBild claims, and that’s the requisite four-door coupe SUV — something Porsche, oddly, does not yet have. Yes, the Cayenne will reportedly gain a swoopier sibling, allowing its largest vehicle to battle the likes of the BMW X6 and Mercedes-Benz GLE Coupe.

This model will apparently show its face (and carefully massaged rear end) later this year.

Much later, we can expect an electric version of the Macan SUV, riding atop a new, dedicated EV platform and housing three powerplants of varying grunt. Buyers would be able to choose from outputs of 215 to 430 horsepower. Range is pegged at 310 European miles, which translates into a U.S. driving distance somewhere in the low-to-mid 200-mile range — on par with the Jaguar I-Pace. The Macan EV should appear in 2022.

Four-door coupe SUVs, high-end grand tourer coupes, and electric vehicles. Yup, there’s no mistaking Porsche for anything but a premium German automaker.

[Image: Porsche]

Steph Willems
Steph Willems

More by Steph Willems

Comments
Join the conversation
3 of 16 comments
  • Roberto Esponja Roberto Esponja on May 04, 2018

    Am I the only one that thinks those avocado calipers make Porsches look like crap? Yeah, I know, it's a hybrid model thing, but come on...

    • Wodehouse Wodehouse on May 04, 2018

      Peek-a-boo calipers are the automotive equivalents of the human Tramp Stamp: unfortunate, and, extremely popular trends. Yuck!

  • Johnster Johnster on May 05, 2018

    I think a 2-door Panamera sounds great. I liked the 928, but it always looked a bit off to me. Also, I think that the station wagon version of the Panamera looks better than the 4-door.

  • ChristianWimmer This would be pretty cool - if it kept the cool front end of the standard/AMG G-Class models. The front ends of current Mercedes’ EVs just look lame.
  • Master Baiter The new Model 3 Performance is actually tempting, in spite of the crappy ergonomics. 0-60 in under 3 seconds, which is faster than a C8 Corvette, plus it has a back seat and two trunks. And comparable in weight to a BMW M3.
  • SCE to AUX The Commies have landed.
  • Arthur Dailey The longest we have ever kept a car was 13 years for a Kia Rondo. Only ever had to perform routine 'wear and tear' maintenance. Brake jobs, tire replacements, fluids replacements (per mfg specs), battery replacement, etc. All in all it was an entirely positive ownership experience. The worst ownership experiences from oldest to newest were Ford, Chrysler and Hyundai.Neutral regarding GM, Honda, Nissan (two good, one not so good) and VW (3 good and 1 terrible). Experiences with other manufacturers were all too short to objectively comment on.
  • MaintenanceCosts Two-speed transfer case and lockable differentials are essential for getting over the curb in Beverly Hills to park on the sidewalk.
Next